Sony DSC-R1 or Canon 350D

Hi there

We are looking to upgrade from a basic Reefmaster DC210 and Strobe to something a bit better. I've narrowed it down to either the Canon 350D or to wait for the Sony DSC-R1.

It's not essential for us to have a SLR camera, although that's where the quality appears to be at the moment prior to the R1 coming onto the market. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Simon

Hi Simon,

Welcome to the forums!

Well, I for one like to take pictures, and take advantage of what is already there, so my suggestion is the Canon 350D. According to Sony's site, the DSC-R1 will only start shipping in mid-November, and I expect the housings will only become available 2-3 months after that. So, it will take a good 4-6 months for you to have a housed Sony DSC-R1. There are plenty of housings available for the Canon, so just think about all the pictures you could get with the 350D in the mean time!

I hope this helps,

Luiz

I agree with Luiz. Get the 350D and start shooting! You can outfit the 350D with the exact same zoom lens as the one that comes with the Sony and use that for topsides shooting. The lens on the Sony isn't that good for underwater use - but you can't change it out - which to me is a problem.

Underwater, you'll LOVE the Canon 60mm macro lens and either the Sigma 10-20 zoom or a Sigma 15mm fisheye. Both are very affordable.

Not to mention that you can take excellent photos with the Canon "kit" lens that comes with the 350D

HTH

James

Thanks to both of you for the advice!

Just one more question though.. How easy is it to start taking underwater photos without using a 'live' LCD screen. Both my wife and I have become so used to using the LCD on cameras and camcorders that I'm not sure how easy it would be for us to start using a regular viewfinder underwater (although we did obviously used to use them on 35mm Cameras underwater). Am I right in saying that the 350D does not provide a live LCD screen while shooting? (That's what initially drew my attention to the R1).

Best Regards, Simon

That's right. No live preview on the 350D.

I was surprised how quickly I got used to looking through the viewfinder. Now I dont miss the LCD at all. If my next camera was somehow able to do live preview, I doubt that I would use it.

I borrowed a compact camera from a friend a few months back and I was really annoyed because I was trying to compose with the LCD, but that wasn't bright enough and I couldn't see anything in shallow water. But I haven't tried a compact in a long time, and it may well be that the new ones have brighter LCDs.

Now, as a side note, did you see the design and placement of the Sony R1 LCD? I wonder how housing manufacturers are going to build their housings to accomodate that design...

Ike, which photo are you referring to? I think the LCD is always folded over the top, not the back. Here is some of the text:

"The DSC-R1 has a really unique LCD monitor, mounted on the top of the camera it can flip-up and twist through 270 degrees. Usually it would be folded flat (as shown in the first image below), flip it up to enable LCD view and it can be used in a range of different positions. This also facilitates a fairly interesting waist-level 'medium format like' shooting option."

From what I saw the LCD can only be vertically (what would generate a lot of empty space in the housing), or flat on the top, what would be the "medium format like" postion, in which you would have to look down in order to shoot something in front of you. I don't think this is good for UW photography, unless you shoot a lot of over/under photos. Of course, you can always house it with the LCD closed and turned off, but the original post was referring to the advantage of having live preview on the LCD of the R1.

I think Ike was saying you would view the lcd from above...

If you could use the LCD from above and the EVF from the rear that might be a very good housing. Ike will undoubtedly come out with a housing first; but as others have mention it will be some months. You will have to wait for user reviews to find out if the Sony is good for UW use.

There have been a number of posts on this; but it is EASIER to use the viewfinder on a dSLR to compose a picture than it is to use live review on a digicam to compose a picture.

One wonders if a housing for the sony will be smaller than that for a dSLR. It will also take a dome port to take advantage of it's wide 24 mm lens and the add on wide angle lens.

I think the biggest challenge with this camera will be to design a port that accomodates the entire zoom range (24-120). I am assuming this lens extends a lot, and I don't see how a dome port can accomodate such extension, but then if it is not possible how do you know when to stop zooming to avoid scratching the inside of the dome?

I switched from an LCD-composed system (a Coolpix 5000) to a viewfinder DSLR about a year ago. The adjustment did take a while but the effort was well worth it.

Again thanks to everyone for the advice!

Ok, so it looks like the decision has been made to go with the Canon, so now obviously that brings me onto the question of housings!!

I have an Ikelite Housing for my PC350 Camcorder which I'm very happy with and although I'm having problems with the lights I would definately consider Ikelite again. However I would like something with a white balance option. Any suggestions?

We live in the UK so it's always a pain to get things shipped to us from the US, but as UK prices are normally 50-75% more expensive then it has to be an option!

Once again any adivce would be appreciated.

Best Regards, Simon

A complete list can be found on the digideep.com site:

http://digideep.com/english/digital/photo/...Rebel-XT/7/2017

For someone in the US, Ikelite may be the best choice for price and support. I don't know what that's like in the UK.

Well my wife has decided that under no circumstances does she want to use a viewfinder and that she will only use a camera with a Live LCD. As she will be the main user of this camera (I'm still busy with my camcorder) I've lost hands down on the Canon 350D

I guess I need to look at those Digicams again, so you'll probably see me asking for some advice on that forum once I narrow them down a bit !!

Thanks to everyone for all the advice though, it was a great help

Simon

If your looking for a digicam with a great LCD and one that takes great pic - have a look at the Olympus C-7070. They are supposedly not being made any more, but are widely available.